G20 leaders to adopt final document outlining future plans on Sunday

AFAQ NEWS

The final day of the Group of Twenty (G20) summit in Rome will be devoted to discussions on climate change and sustainable development.

Leaders of 20 countries, which together account for 80% of the global GDP, 60% of the global population and 75% of exports, will publish a joint declaration after their Sunday’s meeting.

The work on the document still continues. Journalists have learned that the statement so far is too vague regarding the deadline for preventing global temperatures from rising by more than 1.5 degrees Celsius and practical steps to attain this goal. This is partially due to the fact that national hydrocarbon neutrality deadlines vary from country to country, from 2030 in the European Union to 2060 in China.

The provisions that will certainly be reflected in the final document are already known. They include supporting the World Health Organization’s targets to vaccinate 40% of the population of all countries by the end of this year, and 70% by mid-2022, as well as introducing minimal corporate tax and setting up a global council on healthcare and finances to underline the need of combining these two spheres for countering future epidemiological challenges.

The issue of the global pandemic will be reflected in the declaration’s section devoted to vaccination, distribution of vaccines and boosting their production.

Apart from national leaders, heads of leading global organizations are also taking part in the event.

 

Russia at the summit

Russian President Vladimir Putin will take part in Sunday’s events via a video linkup, his spokesman Dmitry Peskov earlier told reporters. The Russian leader is expected to address the session devoted to climate change and environmental issues.

Putin joined the first working session of the Rome summit via a video linkup on October 30. In his speech, the Russian leader focused on the pandemic, suggesting to mutually recognize vaccines and vaccination certificates and to develop mechanisms allowing to promptly upgrade anti-coronavirus vaccines as new strains of the pathogen emerge. He reiterated that Russia’s Sputnik V has demonstrated its high efficacy and safety, while single-component Sputnik Light can be used to enhance other vaccines.

Speaking about economic matters, Putin said a rise in budget deficits in countries across the world carried the risk of high global inflation. In his words, states need to take steps to normalize budget and monetary policies, improve ways to manage the economy’s demand patterns and set economic priorities to resolve inequality issues and raise living standards.

Addressing the global energy sector problems, Putin said both suppliers and consumers need to act in a responsible manner to ensure stability on the energy market.

At the coming summit, the leaders of the G20 states will discuss changes in corporate tax regulation, in particular for digital companies, as well as information security and development of artificial intelligence technologies, Russia’s G20 Sherpa Svetlana Lukash told reporters in the run-up to the summit.

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov represents Russia at the summit in person. He arrived in Rome on Saturday afternoon and held a number of bilateral meetings. On Sunday, he will take part in G20 sessions.

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